The Greatest Thing You'll Ever Learn
by macisgate
Summary: He showed her what that was. A little DanJan vignette. Too much summary would be telling. Enjoy!


The Greatest Thing

Disclaimer: I would if I could but I can't own Stargate. Though if they wanted to give it to me...

Season: Any. You can pick your favorite.

Spoilers: None. I'm just taking into account that Janet is living, thriving, and will never, never die. Ahem.

Hey everyone! Well, I wanted my next story to be a comedy, but I just got this new CD, and it seems like every song could make a story of its own. As soon as I heard the words to this one, I thought of Daniel. I'm not usually a Dan/Janer, but I just couldn't help myself. The song is called "Nature Boy" by Celine Dion on her CD "A New Day Has Come". Hope you enjoy! I've got another song pegged for a Sam/Jack moment, but that will just have to wait for the next story.

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"Cassie, hand me some more of those tomatoes," Janet called over her shoulder as her daughter came into the kitchen with arms laden.

"Just a second," she said as she put the basket and blanket down on the floor. Reaching into the drawer of the fridge, she pulled out three more tomatoes for her mother to slice.

"All right, that should just about do it," she said, piling containers into the basket. "We've got fried chicken, boiled eggs, tomatoes, apples, carrot sticks, rolls. Can you think of anything else?" Janet said, wiping her hands on a dishtowel.

"No, that sounds great. Wait! What about dessert?"

"Oh yeah," Janet smiled with a particular gleam in her eye as she made her way over to the fridge.

"Always delectable and always a classic – chocolate cake."

"Perfect."

Just then the phone rang. Glancing at the caller id, Cassie realized it was a friend from school.

"Just don't stay on too long," Janet instructed over her shoulder. "We should be ready to go in about twenty minutes."

"All right."

Janet smiled as Cassie walked out of the room carrying the cordless phone. Pouring herself the last of the coffee from the pot, she sat down to read some of the morning's newspaper. But instead of concentrating on the words, she found her mind drifting to another time not so very long ago.

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Janet sighed as she put the rest of her equipment away. SG7 had recently come back from an unexpected ambush, and although their injuries weren't serious, they were numerous. Not to mention that it was getting late in the evening. Wearily she rubbed her forehead where a headache was steadily growing, then put her patients' files back in their proper places.

She walked over to one of her patients who would be spending the night. As she checked his vitals, she belatedly realized he was talking on his cell phone. She was about to admonish him about using the phone near medical equipment, but his conversation caught her ear before she could open her mouth.

"No honey, I'm sorry... No, just a little accident at the lab today... Oh, just the usual deep space radar telemetry experiments," he glanced at Janet with a wince. Janet gave him a sympathetic smile in return. Just who had made up that cover story anyway?

"All right, I'll probably see you tomorrow... Love you too."

With a guilty look on his face, he shut his phone off and set it on the table beside him.

"Sorry about that Dr. Frasier. I know you don't like cell phones in here. I just didn't want my wife to worry."

She decided to let him down easy.

"Don't worry about it Lieutenant. I understand. But next time, just ask one of the nurses or me, and you can use one of the infirmary phones. We have a separate phone line especially for such instances."

"Thanks, doc."

"Try and get somesleep now, okay?"

"Yes ma'am."

Janet walked away and handed the Lieutenant's chart to one of the nurses.

"Candace, I'm going to go grab a coffee. Page me if something comes up, okay?"

"Yes ma'am."

Taking off her lab coat, she left the infirmary. She had intended on just getting her coffee and returning, butinstead she made her way to the surface and to the edge of the woods. It was freezing cold, but she welcomed it. Made the barely warm commissary coffee not seem so bad. Blowing across the top, she let steam rise to warm her face.

Letting all her breath out in a sigh, she paused a few seconds before inhaling once again. She'd been in a bad mood all day. She wasn't sure why, just knew she was. She had a feeling everyone else knew it too even though she'd tried to hide it as best she could.

Shaking her head, she chided herself for trying to lie to her own mind. Of course she knew why she was in a bad mood. Pulling out her dog tags, she fingered the rings that shared the chain. Today would have been her wedding anniversary. Fifteenth to be exact. It hadn't been a great marriage but a marriage nonetheless. And she missed it. Not having someone to come home to. Someone who worried about you when you were late like the Lieutenant's wife. Sure she had Cassie, and that helped. It just wasn't the same. She decided to stopresisting and let her eyes water slightly. Everyone was entitled to a pity party now and then, weren't they? But the sound of approaching footsteps put them once again under strict control.

"Janet? Is that you?"

Pasting on a forced smile, she turned toward the voice.

"Hey, Daniel, what are you doing here? I thought you'd have left by now."

"No. SG7 managed to bring back some tablets to translate. Two of them were pretty damaged in the fight, so it's taking longer than I'd planned. I just came up for some fresh air. What about you though? Are you sure you should be out here by yourself? It's getting late."

Janet was about to retort that she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself, but bit back her tongue in time. There was no need in spreading her bad mood to someone who was just trying to be kind.

"I'm okay, Daniel. Just wanted a little time to think."

"Oh," he nodded. He didn't say anything else, just leaned his back against the nearest tree and looked up at the sky.

She let the silence hang for a few moments.

"Today would have been my fifteenth wedding anniversary." She wasn't sure why she'd told him. She looked over at him uncertainly.

"Divorced?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said, taking a long sip of her coffee.

"I'm sorry."

She shook her head.

"It doesn't matter. I don't even know why it's bothering me. It's not like it was a great marriage."

"But it was still a marriage."

"Yeah, it was."

Silence again.

"Sha're and I would be celebrating our anniversary in a couple weeks," he admitted quietly.

"Oh, Daniel, I'm sorry."

He turned his eyes back to her.

"There's nothing to be sorry about. I'm not. Not anymore at least. We had one year. One absolutely amazing, beautiful year. I would never want that time erased even if it meant I didn't have to go through the pain now."

Her eyes betrayed her once again.

"You're lucky you had that kind of love. The last time I spoke with my husband, we were yelling at each other across a table at my lawyer's office."

"But there were good times, weren't there?"

"Yes," she nodded. "Yes there were."

She put a hand on his arm. "Thanks, Daniel."

Letting loose one last sigh, she scrubbed at her eyes.

"I'd better get back to the infirmary."

"Well, wait. Do you have to?"

"What?"

"I mean, your shift's over, isn't it?"

"Yes, I guess you're right. I was just going to finish up some paperwork before I left."

"Can it wait till tomorrow?"

"I guess so."

"Good," he said, taking her hand in his. "Then let me take you out for a real coffee."

"Daniel, you don't have to do that. I'm fine, really. Besides, you said you had work to do."

"It can wait till tomorrow. Actually, Jack ordered me off-base five hours ago. Come on. I know this really great place in town."

Janet gave up arguing and let him lead her to his car.

And that's where it had all begun.

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Janet broke out of her reverie at the sound of the front door opening.

"Hey, anybody home?"

"In the kitchen."

Daniel walked into the room and right over to her for a hug and kiss.

"You guys ready?" he said pulling away slightly.

"Ready when you are," she grinned.

"I love you, you know that?"

"I love you too, Daniel."

Gathering up their picnic lunch and dragging Cassie away from the phone, they piled into Daniel's car for a day at the park.

Life was really, really good.

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_There was a boy_

_A very strange enchanted boy_

_They say he wandered very far very far_

_Over land and sea_

_A little shy and sad of eye_

_But very wise was he_

_And then one day_

_One magic day he passed my way_

_And while we spoke of many things_

_Fools and kings_

_This he said to me_

_The greatest thing you'll ever learn_

_Is just to love and be loved in return_

_The greatest thing you'll ever learn_

_Is just to love and be loved in return_

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Well, there we go. Hope you enjoyed that! Best wishes and lots of love! A Sam and Jack vignette will be coming your way shortly!

macisgate


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